China's Tsingshan looks to strengthen presence in Argentine lithium industry

Chinese stainless steel and nickel company Tsingshan Holding looks to double capacity of Argentina’s Centenario Ratones project to 50,000 tons annually of lithium carbonate and reach exports of US$4 billion a year from 2024, the Argentine Foreign Ministry announced on Wednesday.

Lithium carbonate is the raw material used in lithium-ion batteries, as well as some pharmaceuticals.

Tsingshan owns 49.9% of the project in Salta Province (in NW Argentina), which it shares with French mining and metals multinational Eramet.

The Centenario Ratones salt flats is located at an altitude of 3,800 m (12,500 ft) and has resources estimated at 10 million tons of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE), says Eramet.

Chinese companies have stakes in nine mining projects in Argentina, six of which are lithium.

China was the main destination for Argentine lithium exports in 2021, representing 42% of the total; the U.S. purchased 19%.

Chinese investment announcements in Argentina amounted to US$2.62 billion in 2020-22, and acquisitions and mergers involving Chinese companies totaled US$1.76 billion.

At: https://www.bnamericas.com/en/news/chinas-tsingshan-looks-to-strengthen-presence-in-argentine-lithium-industry

The Centenario Ratones salt flats in NW Argentina.

While Argentina is the world's fourth-largest producer of lithium, output has largely stalled since 2016.

Tshingshan's announcement - together with similar initiatives from Australia's Río Tinto and South Korea's FOSCO - could boost the country's lithium output in coming years.

Demand for lithium carbonate is projected to quadruple by 2030, and the compound's price has soared this year from around $14,000 a ton to over $80,000.